Katy principal readies for new role

MAUREEN L. KING, Copyright 2003 Houston Chronicle

Published 5:30 am, Thursday, August 21, 2003

Joe Cammarata, 45, will get his first opportunity as a high school principal in about a year. The Katy Independent School District has named him principal of Morton Ranch High School, which is scheduled to open in August 2004.

"I would like to create a campus that has extremely high expectations academically, with top-quality programs in all areas in a safe and secure and supportive environment," he said.

Cammarata, principal at Katy Junior High School, is preparing to open the district's fifth high school. Under construction near the intersection of Mason and Franz roads, the two-story, 480,000-square-foot high school is being built to keep up with the district's growth at a cost of $66.7 million.

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"Katy is one of the fastest-growing (districts) in the state," said Kris Taylor, district spokeswoman. "We're slated to grow in enrollment about 75 percent from 40,000 to 70,000 by 2010."

Morton Ranch Junior High, the district's ninth junior high, is scheduled to open in August. It will share the same site as Morton Ranch High.

Although the rezoning process for the high school remains uncertain and may not be completed until fall, Cammarata is planning.

"Once the rezoning is determined, I'm going to take a grass-roots approach in getting the community involved in the development of the new high school through community meetings and open-house type settings," he said. "My goal is to make Morton Ranch High School the best school in Texas."

In education for 17 years, Cammarata has been an administrator for the past 10 at the junior high level. Since 2000, Cammarata has been principal at the district's largest junior high school.

"It's a huge challenge, but it's a transition that can be made," Cammarata said of the transition from principal of a junior high to a high school. "I certainly have a lot to learn, and we certainly have an outstanding support system in Katy ISD, with the central office staff and veteran high school principals."

Influenced by teachers he had as a student, Cammarata, a native Houstonian, graduated with bachelor's and master's degrees in education from Sam Houston State University in Huntsville. He began teaching physical education in the Houston Independent School District and later began working as a junior high assistant principal and principal in the Huntsville Independent School District.

"He's very child-centered and very supportive of teachers, students and the community," said Denise Majewski, assistant principal at Katy Junior High. "I think he'll do a great job at the new high school."

Darryl Dans is the interim principal at Katy Junior High. The Katy Junior High assistant principal was promoted July 28.

"The most important thing is getting Katy Junior High ready for the upcoming school year on Aug. 12," Cammarata said.

Although the new high school is not scheduled to open for more than a year, Cammarata is looking forward to contributing to the district in a different capacity.

"It's a huge honor to be selected for this position," he said. "But to be honest, it's a huge honor to be a principal at any school in Katy."

Cammarata and his wife Kathy, an instructional specialist for the district, have a daughter who will be a senior at Katy High School this fall.